Clinton, Giuliani pull ahead in poll-USA Today 2/13/07

[MilesColtrane]

WASHINGTON — New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani widened leads over their rivals in recent weeks as they began to openly campaign for the Democratic and Republican presidential nominations, according to a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll.
The survey taken Friday through Sunday — nearly a year before the presidential primaries begin — shows Clinton with a 19-percentage-point edge over Illinois Sen. Barack Obama among Democrats and Giuliani with a 16-point margin over Arizona Sen. John McCain among Republicans.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-02-13-2008-campaign-poll_x.htm?csp=34

[Deja Q]

1. Which means we better do what the media tell us to, right?

I betcha Giuliani will win in 2008...

:shrug:

[MilesColtrane]

3. Alls I know is I wish Clark would freakin' declare already. n/t

[Bucky]

22. you too?

Think about the poor Gore folks, tho. At least our guy can only go up. Gore's actually slipping the longer he waits.

[HappyWeasel]

4. but then again...

Guiliani wouldn't be such as bad president. I might consider voting for him. Then again, he will probably flip-flop into a religious bigot...also, half the people don't know that Guiliani is a social-liberal (even too liberal for me on gun control) and is quite corrupt.

I predict that:
Guiliani will lose the primary when it is figured out that he is too liberal or too corrupt to be nominated.

If he wins the primary, which will probably be by flip-flopping, we can attack him all campaign long. We will make John Kerry look like straight shooter.

All in all, Guiliani will not be it. I am predicting Mc Cain. between 2000 and maybe even 2004 or 2005, he would have won in a landslide (350evs or 55% or percent)...but now...with his flip-flopping, and the GOP brand down the drain, hes gonna hafta struggle unless we have won the war by election day or if there is a MASSIVE scandal for the democrats.

[skipos]

11. "he will probably flip-flop into a religious bigot"

Hopefully you have been paying attention to his recent promises to appoint "strict constructionist" supreme court justices. He thanks God that Bush is our President. He loves the war in Iraq.

No remotely progressive person should vote for him.

[karynnj]

19. Could we please drop the RW framing here

"We will make John Kerry look like straight shooter." Senator Kerry is not running and compared to most 4 term Senators has a pretty consistent record on most things. The Republicans NEVER identified real flip flops - the entire thing was based on a set of two votes. (Kerry had 100% on civil rights, women's rights; 96% by the LCV on the environment. Kerry had a pretty consistent liberal record. When you look at the floor speeches, I have read speeches like his Clean Election of 1997, which sound like a speech he could give tomorrow. Where he has changed his vote - ie voting for NAFTA and then against CAFTA - the speeches show very similar concerns.

Kerry voted yes to an Iraq funding bill, when it was paid for by repealing some tax cuts on the top 2% and when it insisted on oversight. After this was defeated he voted no on the bill, where Bush gave no plan, didn't pay for the cost, and had no oversight.

Kerry's votes here made perfect sense to me. Incidently, Edwards did the same on these 2 votes. So, if the flip flopping is based on those votes, is Edwards a flip flopper? I don't think this is true based on these votes which were normal voting in the Senate.

Now that he is not the candidate and threathens no one's favorite, can Democrats stop repeating blindly repeating this. Do you want to undercut a strong Democratic voice?

[lapfog_1]

6. No matter who wins between them

(edit to remove a post that was made in anger).

What I really dislike is that it's a year before the first primary and the media wants this to be "over" today, the candidates picked and the national election tomorrow. Why can't we all just ignore this crap and let everyone running have their say about things and THEN pick two or more candidates for a national election AND then have them debate their positions and beliefs and have an election?

This kind of premature polling sucks.

[MilesColtrane]

13. Well, really the only mature poll is the actual election.

Every poll is premature.

Political junkies (like me) happen to enjoy the way the campaigns unfold, and the polling that goes along with them.

Polls influence the candidates more than the voters. For one thing, it helps them know where to allocate funds.
Voters are influenced by candidates winning primaries.

I doubt any candidate could conduct a successful national campaign without looking at polls.

[David Dunham]

2. Where's Obama's bounce? I guess it didn't occur.

[HappyWeasel]

5. Looks like the only one who hasn't caught any flak yet is Hillary.

[MilesColtrane]

9. Could be that his bounce was nullified by every MM source running this story.

Obama Apologizes for Saying Troops' Lives 'Wasted'

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=2872135&page=1

Headline should read "Obama Apologizes for telling the truth".

Nobody wants to face the stark fist of reality that their son or daughter died for the vanity and greed of a meglomaniac even if it's true.
Obama's got to be a little more savvy....sign of greeness on the campaign trail?

[David Dunham]

7. Hillary and Rudy will make it an all NY race. Like Mets v. Yanks in 2001 World Series

[William Bloode]

8. I was watching Tucker a bit ago.

He had a bit on where he showed who was ahead this far ahead in previous elections. What it showed was that not a single front runner this far out on either side has ever secured the nomination.

Right now it all about name recognition.

[David Dunham]

10. Incorrect. Bush and Gore led now in 1999; Kerry led now in early 2003

Dean's surge began later in 2003 and lasted only the year.

[skipos]

14. I have never seen a poll with Kerry leading from Jan or Feb 2003.

Lieberman was ahead of Kerry in everything I have seen.

2/28/2003
New Fox News Democratic Poll

New national Democratic Primary poll from Fox News:

Gephardt 16%
Lieberman 15
Kerry 10
Edwards 6
Moseley-Braun 5
Dean 4
Sharpton 4
Kucinich 2

Please show me some polls with Kerry leading.

[William Bloode]

18. Yeah but Gore was Veep, so more or less a shoe in.

* had been groomed and selected thats almost certain. I guess you could make the argument for Hil that she was groomed.

[Marr]

12. God, corporate America wants Hillary nominated so bad it's pathetic.

It'd provide them with yet another "can't lose" election. They'd very much like to give you the choice between "corporatist" and "outright fascist".

[fidgeting wildly]

15. The Republic Party will eat itself over Giuliani before it's over.

I'm originally from Texas and Giuliani's past and his quasi-liberal social policies are not well known there. Most people I've talked to about him only know about his 9/11 "heroics." I'm guessing the same is true of other red states. On top of that, his recent overtures to evangelical Christians have been hilariously transparent. Giuliani will not survive the primaries.

[Seen the light]

16. These polls are worthless

It's out of the realm of possibility that Giuliani is nominated. He seriously has zero chance.

[WI_DEM]

17. As meaningful as the polls at this time in 2004 were

[antiimperialist]

20. Hillary's candidacy announcement made front pages. Obama didn't

This is one of the reasons why Hillary is ahead by a relatively wide margin. She is given way more publicity and coverage.

[LynnTheDem]

21. So...will the Republic Party run on MORALS with Giuliani? I sure hope they try!

:rofl: